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Monosodyum glutamat (MSG), also known as sodium glutamate, is a sodium salt of glutamic acid.
Monosodyum glutamat (MSG) is found naturally in some foods including tomatoes and cheese in this glutamic acid form.
Monosodyum glutamat (MSG) is used in cooking as a flavor enhancer with a savory taste that intensifies the umami flavor of food, as naturally occurring glutamate does in foods such as stews and meat soups.
CAS: 142-47-2
MF: C5H10NNaO4
MW: 171.13
EINECS: 205-538-1
Synonyms
L-Glutamic acid monosodium salt monohydrate,L-2-Aminopentanedioic acid, MSG, Sodium L-glutamate;L-(+)Sodium glutamat;L-Glutamic acid mono;MSG (MONOSODIUM GLUTAMATE);L-SodiuM glutaMate hydrate;sodiumglutamatemonohydrate;vetsin;zest
Monosodyum glutamat (MSG) was first prepared in 1908 by Japanese biochemist Kikunae Ikeda, who tried to isolate and duplicate the savory taste of kombu, an edible seaweed used as a broth (dashi) ingredient in Japanese cuisine.
Monosodyum glutamat (MSG) balances, blends, and rounds the perception of other tastes.
Monosodyum glutamat (MSG), along with disodium ribonucleotides, is commonly used and found in stock (bouillon) cubes, soups, ramen, gravy, stews, condiments, savory snacks, etc.
The U.S. Food and Drug Administration has given Monosodyum glutamat (MSG) its generally recognized as safe (GRAS) designation.
Monosodyum glutamat (MSG) is a popular misconception that MSG can cause headaches and other feelings of discomfort, known as "Chinese restaurant syndrome".
Several blinded studies show no such effects when Monosodyum glutamat (MSG) is combined with food in normal concentrations, and are inconclusive when MSG is added to broth in large concentrations.
The European Union classifies Monosodyum glutamat (MSG) as a food additive permitted in certain foods and subject to quantitative limits.
Monosodyum glutamat (MSG) has the HS code 2922.42 and the E number E621.
Monosodyum glutamat (MSG) has a unique taste, known as “umami”, which is different from the four basic tastes of sweet, salty, sour, and bitter.
Monosodyum glutamat (MSG) is used in large quantities as a flavor enhancer throughout the world.
Monosodyum glutamat (MSG) is not a direct taste enhancer but a complex flavor enhancer for gravies, meats, poultry, sauces, and in other combinations.
Monosodyum glutamat (MSG) is also used to enhance the taste of tobacco and to treat hepatic coma.
As a salt of amino acid, Monosodyum glutamat (MSG) is also safe in practices of use and concentration in cosmetics, such as skin care products.
History of Development
The best known and most widely used flavor enhancer is Monosodyum glutamat (MSG).
In 1866, a German chemist, Ritthausen, isolated glutamic acid.
Later, another chemist converted the acid to a sodium salt, monosodium glutamate.
In doing their work, neither had any interest in flavor.
More than 40 years later, in 1908, a Japanese chemist at the University of Tokyo, Dr. Kikunae Ikeda, discovered the flavor enhancing properties of MSG. Dr. Ikeda had set out to find out why and how a certain seaweed, Laminaria japonica, affected flavor.
Japanese cooks had used this seaweed for centuries to improve the flavor of soups and certain other foods.
Dr. Ikeda discovered that the ingredient in the seaweed that made the difference was MSG, and that Monosodyum glutamat (MSG) had an unusual ability to enhance or intensify the flavor of many high protein foods.
After isolating MSG, Dr. Ikeda developed a process for extracting it from wheat flour and other flours.
Working with the Japanese chemical company, Suzuki and Co., he supervised the construction of a plant and, as a partner with the company, began commercial production of Monosodyum glutamat (MSG) in 1909.
There were several attempts to produce MSG in the United States in the years following, but Monosodyum glutamat (MSG) was not until the 1940s that large- scale MSG production began in this country.
By 1968, U.S. production had grown to 46 million pounds per year.
The latest production figures (1987) reported 18.6 million pounds per year.
Flavor and enhancing properties.
At one time, Monosodyum glutamat (MSG) was felt that MSG had a somewhat meaty flavor and that this flavor was a factor in its ability to intensify the flavors of other foods, particularly protein-rich foods.
Monosodyum glutamat (MSG) was discovered, however, that the meaty taste came rather from contaminants in the crude glutamate, and when these contaminants were sharply reduced, the flavor characteristic also was reduced considerably.
Monosodyum glutamat (MSG) is not flavorless.
In large enough concentrations, or by itself, Monosodyum glutamat (MSG) has been found to have a taste of its own, sometimes described as sweet-saline.
There are some, in fact, who feel that Monosodyum glutamat (MSG) is nothing more than a seasoner which gains its effect by combining with and intensifying the flavors of the foods to which it is added.
However, to say that Monosodyum glutamat (MSG) only intensifies the flavor of foods is too simplistic.
When monosodium glutamate is added to food, several specific flavor characteristics are enhanced - such as impact, body or fullness, continuity, mouth fullness, mildness, and complexity.
Glutamate also harmonizes the wide range of flavors present in sauces, soups and casseroles, promoting a highly blended and full-bodied perception of flavor.
The savory taste of glutamate is to tomatoes, cheese, and meat what sweetness is to sugar, sourness is to lemons, saltiness is to anchovies and bitterness is to coffee.
Just as each of these foods has a distinctive taste, food high in glutamate has a basic and independent taste.
In China and Japan, there is a concept for this independent taste, which they call Xian-Wei (China) and Umami (Japan).
Current research has found more than 40 umami substances of which glutamate is most common.
In fact, umami is an integral part of cuisines throughout the world and has been described by Westerners as “savory,” “broth-like” and “meaty.”.
Production.
Monosodyum glutamat (MSG) is commonly produced using a fermentation process using a glucose (often sugar molasses) as a starting substance.
Once the glucose is converted to glutamic acid, the glutamic acid is filtered, dissolved and converted to Monosodyum glutamat (MSG) by neutralization with sodium hydroxide.
The monosodium glutamate solution is decolorized.
Monosodyum glutamat (MSG) is then crystallized, dried, sieved, packed and shipped.
Monosodyum glutamat (MSG) Chemical Properties
Melting point: 232°C
Alpha: 20 -3.5° (10% soln in 5° Bé HCl); D20 +25.16° (10g MSG/100ml 2N HCl)
Density: d20 (saturated water soln): 1.620
Refractive index: 25 ° (C=10, 2mol/L HCl)
FEMA: 2756 | MONOSODIUM GLUTAMATE
Storage temp.: Keep in dark place,Inert atmosphere,Room temperature
Solubility: Soluble in water; sparingly soluble in ethanol (95%).
Form: powder
Color: white to off-white
Odor: Odorless
Biological source: synthetic
Water Solubility: >=10 g/100 mL at 20 ºC
Merck: 6254
Stability: Hygroscopic
Cosmetics Ingredients: Functions FRAGRANCE
SKIN CONDITIONING
HAIR CONDITIONING
InChI: 1S/C5H9NO4.Na/c6-3(5(9)10)1-2-4(7)8;/h3H,1-2,6H2,(H,7,8)(H,9,10);/q;+1/p-1/t3-;/m0./s1
InChIKey: LPUQAYUQRXPFSQ-DFWYDOINSA-M
LogP: -1.44
CAS DataBase Reference: 142-47-2(CAS DataBase Reference)
EPA Substance Registry System: Monosodyum glutamat (MSG) (142-47-2)
Monosodyum glutamat (MSG), the best-known and most widely used flavor enhancer, is practically odorless and may have either a slightly sweet or slightly salty taste.
Addition of Monosodyum glutamat (MSG) to food enhances several specific flavor characteristics, such as impact, body of fullness, continuity, mouth fullness, mildness and complexity.
For a detailed description of Monosodyum glutamat (MSG) refer to Burdock (1997)
Use
Pure Monosodyum glutamat (MSG) is reported to have a highly unpleasant taste until it is combined with a savory aroma.
The basic sensory function of Monosodyum glutamat (MSG) is attributed to its ability to enhance savory taste-active compounds when added in the proper concentration.
The optimal concentration varies by food; in clear soup, the "pleasure score" rapidly falls with the addition of more than one gram of Monosodyum glutamat (MSG) per 100 mL.
The sodium content (in mass percent) of Monosodyum glutamat (MSG), 12.28%, is about one-third of that in sodium chloride (39.34%), due to the greater mass of the glutamate counterion, and the remainder, 87.72%, is glutamic acid.
Although other salts of glutamate have been used in low-salt soups, they are less palatable than Monosodyum glutamat (MSG).
The ribonucleotide food additives disodium inosinate (E631) and disodium guanylate (E627), as well as conventional salt, are usually used with monosodium glutamate-containing ingredients as they seem to have a synergistic effect.
"Super salt" is a mixture of 9 parts salt, to one part Monosodyum glutamat (MSG) and 0.1 parts disodium ribonucleotides (a mixture of disodium inosinate and disodium guanylate).
Pharmaceutical Applications
Monosodyum glutamat (MSG) is used in oral pharmaceutical formulations as a buffer and a flavor enhancer.
For example, Monosodyum glutamat (MSG) is used with sugar to improve the palatability of bitter-tasting drugs and can reduce the metallic taste of iron-containing liquids.
Monosodyum glutamat (MSG) has also been used in subcutaneous live vaccine injections such as measles, mumps, rubella and varicella-zoster live vaccine (ProQuad).
However, the most widespread use of monosodium glutamate is as a flavor enhancer in food products.
Typically, 0.2–0.9% is used in normally salted foods, although products such as soy protein can contain 10–30%.
The use of monosodium glutamate in food products has been controversial owing to the apparently high number of adverse reactions attributed to the substance, which gives rise to the so-called ‘Chinese Restaurant Syndrome’.
The current consensus is that there is no clinically compelling evidence to suggest that monosodium glutamate may be harmful at the current levels used in foods.
Production
Monosodyum glutamat (MSG) has been produced by three methods: hydrolysis of vegetable proteins with hydrochloric acid to disrupt peptide bonds (1909–1962); direct chemical synthesis with acrylonitrile (1962–1973), and bacterial fermentation (the current method).
Wheat gluten was originally used for hydrolysis because it contains more than 30 g of glutamate and glutamine per 100 g of protein.
As demand for Monosodyum glutamat (MSG) increased, chemical synthesis and fermentation were studied.
The polyacrylic fiber industry began in Japan during the mid-1950s, and acrylonitrile was adopted as a base material to synthesize Monosodyum glutamat (MSG).
As of 2016, most Monosodyum glutamat (MSG) worldwide is produced by bacterial fermentation in a process similar to making vinegar or yogurt.
Sodium is added later, for neutralization.
During fermentation, Corynebacterium species, cultured with ammonia and carbohydrates from sugar beets, sugarcane, tapioca or molasses, excrete amino acids into a culture broth from which L-glutamate is isolated.
Kyowa Hakko Kogyo (currently Kyowa Kirin) developed industrial fermentation to produce L-glutamate.
The conversion yield and production rate (from sugars to glutamate) continues to improve in the industrial production of Monosodyum glutamat (MSG), keeping up with demand.
Monosodyum glutamat (MSG), after filtration, concentration, acidification, and crystallization, is glutamate, sodium ions, and water.
Preparation
Monosodyum glutamat (MSG) is commonly produced by a fermentation process using glucose (often sugar molasses) as a starting substance.
Once the glucose is converted to glutamic acid, Monosodyum glutamat (MSG) is filtered, dissolved and converted to monosodium glutamate by neutralization with sodium hydroxide.
Monosodyum glutamat (MSG) is decolorized and then crystallized, dried, sieved, packed and shipped.
